In brief

• Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever offered his resignation to King Philippe after coalition talks on the 2027 federal budget failed.
• The five-party coalition is split over cutting about 10 billion euros in spending, with N-VA and MR backing health cuts and other partners demanding higher taxes on the wealthiest.
• The king has not decided on the resignation, will consult coalition leaders, and meets De Wever again on Friday.

Resignation after failed budget talks

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever went to the royal palace on Monday morning and offered his resignation to King Philippe (Premier przyszedł z dymisją, ale to nie koniec kryzysu – RMF24) (Premier Belgii Bart De Wever złożył rezygnację. Król Filip dał sobie kilka dni – Rzeczpospolita) (Премьер Бельгии Барт де Вевер подал в отставку – NV). The move followed overnight talks with his coalition, which did not produce an agreement on the federal budget for 2027 (Прем'єр Бельгії де Вевер подав у відставку, король Філіп взяв час на консультації – Espreso) (Belgický premiér De Wever nabídl rezignaci – Novinky.cz). The meeting with the king lasted more than an hour, and De Wever left the palace shortly after 11:00.

Coalition split over spending and taxes

The five-party coalition is divided over how to find savings of about 10 billion euros (Haushaltsstreit - Belgiens Premierminister De Wever bietet König Philippe seinen Rücktritt an – Deutschlandfunk). The coalition includes De Wever's Flemish nationalist N-VA, the Flemish parties CD&V and Vooruit, and the Walloon parties MR and Les Engagés. N-VA and the liberal MR want cuts to health spending. Vooruit, CD&V and Les Engagés reportedly want higher taxes on the wealthiest residents, a demand MR and N-VA firmly reject.

King asks for compromise

The royal palace said King Philippe regrets the lack of agreement and warned that the country cannot afford a prolonged political crisis. He urged all parties to put the public interest and readiness to compromise above everything else. The king has not decided whether to accept the resignation and will consult leaders of the coalition parties in the meantime (Belgický premiér pre nezhody o rozpočte podal demisiu, kráľ ju zvažuje – Aktuality.sk). A further audience with De Wever has been set for Friday.

Possible early elections

If the king accepts the resignation, early elections are one possible outcome.